Bayern Munich striker Harry Kane had a rare off night as the German club were beaten 3-1 at Arsenal in the Champions League on Wednesday for their first defeat of the season.
However, the England captain said there would be no panic and predicted the two sides could very well clash at the end of the tournament next spring.
«It was a tough game and that was about what we expected. It was a good battle in the first half which was quite even,» said Kane, who has scored 29 goals in all competitions for club and country so far this season but was quiet on Wednesday.
«In the second half we didn’t quite have the same energy or intensity and we lost too many games. It’s our first defeat of the season. We don’t want to panic too much about it. But we will certainly learn from it.»
«I’m sure we will see them (Arsenal) again in the later stages of the Champions League.»
During his record-breaking career at Tottenham Hotspur, Kane scored fourteen goals in seventeen North London derbies in the Premier League. He also scored a penalty for Bayern in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final against Arsenal two seasons ago as they won the Bundesliga 3-2 on aggregate.
But Arsenal have grown in stature since then, with a huge summer spending spree giving them a squad that even Bayern can’t match. Arsenal missed key defender Gabriel, 63.5 million pound ($84 million) striker Viktor Gyokeres and others on Wednesday.
However, manager Mikel Arteta still had a bench full of match winners and it was substitutes Noni Madueke and Gabriel Martinelli whose second-half goals sealed a fifth win from five games in this year’s competition and sent Arsenal to the top.
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«We are different, they are different too. It was a different stage of the competition and the margins were small how we came out,» said Arteta when asked what the difference is between his side now and the one from two years ago.
“We are learning, we are better.”
Arsenal top the Premier League by six points and are now three points clear at the top of the Champions League group and already have one foot in the last 16.
However, man-of-the-match Declan Rice said there was no chance of Arsenal becoming complacent.
«That’s just a lot of talk. The Champions League: you’re either in or you’re out,» he said. «At the moment it’s only the league stage, anything can happen. Look at last season, Liverpool finished top, then they faced Paris St Germain and they were out.»
“We just have to take it one game at a time, stay focused and be ready for whatever comes our way because on our day I think we can beat anyone.”
Published on November 27, 2025
